I was so excited this morning as I sat down to study the scriptures when
I came across an article called "Construction of Philly's Mormon Temple without caffeine, smoking, swearing"  It is a great read about the unique construction and work environment at the temple site.  The reasons behind why that happens and the amazing building project that is going on is fantastic.  Read the full article and check out the newest building construction images here.  

It has been just over 2 years since my husband and I attended the groundbreaking ceremonies for the temple being built in Philadelphia at Logan Square by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  It was a sad day when we moved just over a year ago from the beautiful state of Pennsylvania to the barren desert of Arizona.  Our hearts were heavy as we said farewell to friends and family.  We also would miss driving by the Philadelphia Temple site as it was being built as we anticipated the joy of having a temple closer than the Washington D.C. Temple.  Our family went to the D.C. Temple every month for the last 7 years.  Why did we take the time to travel so far with all our little children every month?  Here's a little glimpse about "the why."

Our experiences in the temple are cherished moments of time where we can reflect upon the blessings of being a child of God and helping us refocus on the things that matter most.  Our young children were encouraged to pray for the building of the temple in Philadelphia as soon as it was announced in October 2008.  Every day since then our children have prayed for the temple to be built and even though we have moved from Pennsylvania they still continue to pray for the temple's completion.  They have been blessed to add to their prayers the building of the Gilbert Temple which is now only about 20 minutes away and will be open for a special Open House to the public in January.

To all my Philly friends, come join me in 2016!  I will be back for this great event when the temple open house happens and I'd love to take all my friends from the east coast with me so you can see inside this beautiful temple that is the center of our faith.  Mark your calendars!  Philly 2016!!

Here's a flashback to the groundbreaking ceremony video and pictures from the event.  I was super excited to hear that my mission President, Dean Davies, from the San Juan Puerto Rico Mission would be at the event!  

To learn more about "My Faith" check out my profile at mormon.org.